Mexican borrowers give boost to UK loans giant
LOANS provider International
Personal Finance rocketed as it revealed a return to growth. The firm, which lends to people with little or no borrowing history, said the amount loaned through its online arm was up 44pc in the third quarter, while overall customer numbers increased by 1pc.
IPF, which has no UK operations, said the strong results had been driven by a return to growth in Mexico, modest expansion in Poland and Lithuania, and good performance in southern Europe.
The results mark a strong turnaround for the business, which was hit hard over the summer after it announced a fall in profits in the first results of the year. The FTSE 250 business said the number of home credit customers had slipped 1pc to 2.5m because of stiff competition and tighter legislation, but its digital customer base grew 45pc to 171,000.
Numis, which has a buy rating on the stock, increased its profit forecasts for the firm. Shares soared 11.4pc, or 30.6p to 300p.
The FTSE 100 crept into the black at the end of the day’s trading, finishing 0.07pc higher, or 4.98
points up at 7026.9. The top flight was largely dominated by financials on the day. RBS was the greatest riser, gaining 3.5pc, or 6.3p to 186.3p while Barclays gained 3.2pc, or 5.7p to 183.1p.
Photo-Me International, the company which operates the passport photo booths you find in the likes of Boots, shot up as it revealed pre-tax profits were up 14pc on a year ago. The firm said turnover had climbed 18pc in the first four months of the year. Some of that was because of favourable currency movements – the group has operations in Europe and Asia as well as the UK.
Photo-Me operates around 27,000 photo booths and more than 6,000 children’s rides in shopping centres, supermarkets and rail stations. It also has a laundry business, which reported an increase in turnover of 192pc, compared with the first four months of last year. That has been driven both by an increase in the number of laundry machines being operated as well as a rise in revenue per machine.
The group is now looking to accelerate its expansion plans for the business. Photo-Me announced in August that it had acquired Asda’s photo business, a deal that should be completed by the end of the month. Shares surged 5.8pc, or 8.5p to 154p.
Challenger Acquisitions, the business behind the London Eye, yesterday gave an update on its New York project. The city is getting its own giant observation wheel, some 630 feet high (50pc higher than London’s wheel), and an entertainment complex with events space and parking.
Challenger said the foundation for the wheel is now complete and the four leg pedestals are en route from Montreal for installation. The legs are already in Brooklyn, 18 feet wide, 275 feet tall and weighing some 550 tonnes each. The opening of the site is set for April 2018. Shares gained 1.5pc, or 0.25p to 17.12p.
A delay in the roll-out of a Government project sent GB Group shares lower. The firm, which specialises in identity verification services to stop fraud, money laundering and under-age gambling, said growth had been held back as its Gov.uk Verify project – a new way to prove your identity when using Government services online – had been slower than forecast.
But GB said trading had been robust in the six months to September 30, with revenues up 16pc on the same period a year ago at £37.5m. The firm said operating profit for the period should be at least £5m, up more than 11pc on last year.
Investec cut the stock from a ‘buy’ to a ‘hold’. Shares dropped 18.8pc, or 59.75p to 260p.
Software business Vislink shot up as it announced the sale of its Vislink Communications Systems business. It will sell its hardware division to xG Technology for around £13m, which leaves Vislink substantially debt-free.
Shares rocketed 80.92pc, or 6.15p to 13.75p